Unexpected Turns...

At the end of the summer I laid down plans to remain in the Sno Valley in pursuit of a teaching job. Then a little bird, as they say, informed me of a possibility of a slightly different direction in which to take my life.

There was a job opening at Stevens Pass for their Manager of Youth Programs. I applied for and eventually accepted the position. Again, not what I had planned and wonderfully so.

There's a Calvin and Hobbes where both friends are postholeing through a fresh landscape of snow dragging their sleds behind them. They marvel at the fantastic transformation that snow brings. The strip closes with Calvin stating "It's a magical world Hobbes old buddy. Let's go exploring!" I share those sentiments.

So now I am living directly across the street from Stevens Pass Ski Area in cozy a-frame cabin. My office 5 minutes away which is, in turn, 30 seconds from the lifts. A happy situation. My job will challenge and stretch me in lots of exciting ways. I pray now that I am up to the tasks ahead of me.

So without droning on just yet, here is my new home: (it now has much more snow on it)

Tuschohatchie Bridge

A couple of seasons ago, the NBTC completed a bridge across half of the Tuschohatchie Lake outlet using only hand tools. It was a project we were proud of but the somewhat precarious use of a drift log as a center sill made us nervous about its future. Last season the sill did move, however without the disastrous effects we had anticipated. This is how we found it:




After an hour of messing with it we had got back to its original configuration, as you can see below. Fun, eh?

Good times and gnar times

Somewhat unexpectedly and with a fair amount of reluctance, I returned to the North Bend Trail Crew this summer. I had pictured getting a teaching job and playing hard until school started. That picture never materialized.

Despite whatever reservations I had, good times and gnar times in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness reminded me of the joy of manipulating dirt, wood, and rock with steel, muscles, and human collaboration. That human element is certainly the most important piece. This year's crew fused work and play while simultaneously maintaining eminent productivity. Willing to stay in the field, work overtime, and undertake adventure off the clock, this crew generated a fistful of stories. I'll let them tell you those. In the meantime, allow me to photographically introduce this season's NBTC to you.

Timothy and Kaleetan Peak


Gerad and I








Gerad



Emma



Nate









Miki


Rob and Ryan were part of the crew early this season, but I have no photos...

Flying Video

What a great time-vacuum iMovie is... I spent most of the afternoon playing with this, I hope you enjoy it despite moments of sappy music (which was fairly irresistible). The video is only three minutes long, but I couldn't figure out how to edit the audio tracks. Thus the last song goes forever with a black screen. Just end it when it goes black.

KTN, SE AK

(This sign greeted airline passengers arriving in Ketchikan in the 1950's)

I had the pleasure of taking a bit of time off of work to go visit my friend Bobby in Ketchikan. A bush pilot and a local to Southeast Alaska, Bobby showed me very authentic and rich perspectives of Ketchikan. I saw fjords, muskeg, peaks, alpine lakes, and scarcely-populated harbors from the windows of a de Havilland Beaver, temperate rainforest canopy from a zipline, the rocky coasts of lonely islands from a 14 foot skiff, as well as salmon choked creeks, well-preserved totem poles, and wandering tourists from walks about town.

I enjoyed observing the complicated relationship between proud "locals" and the touring masses. From two to four cruiseships that dock in KTN come the daily influx of thousands of instantly recognizable cruise tourists. Half-drunk fraternities of sport anglers emerge at a steady pace from the airport. Local motorists play chicken with tourists who wander into the crosswalks and clog up the streets. Meanwhile, Ketchikan kids ramble about the streets in the squalling rain with cotton hoodies and carharts and declare minutes into a conversation that they are local: "born and raised." Tourists are welcome in Ketchikan however as somewhat of an annoyance.

The highlight of the trip was emphatically the chance to fly with Bobby and Taquan Air. The pilots, dockworkers, and office staff were eminently friendly and all helped to provide a great service to locals and tourists alike. Let the photos lobby the family (as well as the any and all of the Gruenthals) into considering a floatplane/forest service cabin trip some summer in the future.

Well enough amateurish travel writing, here are some pictures:

Taquan Air's Beavers warming up for the morning.


The illustrious pilot and I.

New Eddystone Rock.


Nooya Lake, following a landing that produced screams of joy in one of the passengers.

Close call on the zipline tour. Hehe.


My silver, now smoked.


The view from Deer Mountain during a brief partly cloudy moment.


What is this? Figure it out and win a prize! Hints: Made circa 1900; it is not scubba gear and it was used in a major Ketchikan industry at the time.

My favorite niece, my favorite nephew.

The superlative events of this past year have been the births of my nephew, Owen Carl Crandall, and my niece, Eleanor Bryn Crandall. I have had the chance to chill with them both, and both are fantastic company. My brothers' blogs have the best evidence of their kids' supreme cuteness. But here a few pictures of them with their youngest uncle.

Making certain things public

It is now my intention to use this blog to better inform friends and family of the goings-on of my life, as vaporous as it is... Perhaps it is appropriate to give a bit of an update on the very basic structure of my life in the recent past and currently. Up until the end of the 06-07 school year I was substitute teaching for the Snoqualmie and Issaquah school districts, whereby I gained much valuable experience and enjoyment in teaching. I stayed busy by delivering pizzas and volunteering as a coach for Mount Si's track team. For the time being, I'm living at home in North Bend, working for the Forest Service, and attending church at Alathia Community Church in Issaquah. I am reluctant to elaborate (or rather speculate) on my future plans as all are subject to change at anytime-- the joy of being single, without a career, and having just enough options to waver easily between being "patient" and "indecisive."